Who Knows?
by Angel Veins
Summary: Sonic and Shadow start a relationship. They experience the ups and downs of it and try to sort it out. But Shadow and his abusive behaviour is driving Sonic away from him. What now? Will everything work out and be ok? Who knows?


**Hi it`s Angel Veins here bringing you Who Knows? Basically this is my very first full Sonadow story. I love the couple Sonadow and am definitely going to do more stories and stuff. I done one previously called Doors which was a little Sonadow oneshot.**

**I chose the title for this story very carefully. I was taking notes for this story and wondering what to call it. I wrote a rough blurb for this story, whilst listening to a song called Who Knows, and the last line of the blurb gave me my title. The thoughts are in italics. Enjoy! **

Shadow sighed as he leaned back on the cushions on his faded red sofa. He shut his eyes, trying to block out everything. He had a right to. This world he was now living in was terrible to him! Everything was so...pristine.

Everyone was happy and anyone who was not would immediately get questioned. And that`s what got Shadow really cranky. He wasn`t exactly the happiest person in the world and didn`t admire life as much as everyone else did or thought he should. Which meant he was one of the few that got annoyed and questioned by others.

The black hedgehog groaned as he lifted himself from the sofa. Ruby eyes ran around the room, admiring the mess. There were masses of mess trashing the whole apartment`s style. Shadow had intended this place to be a piece of artand had said to everyone that had ever been in it to be careful. Now that _piece of art _was wasted, dead.

Empty half broken bottles lay scattered around the room, small pools of dark coloured liquid covering the carpet. Wrappers, price tags and other things were littered around the place, taking up lots of space. The whole place was covered in dust, furniture wasn`t in the slightest bit neat and there looked to be no chance of the hedgehog cleaning up. Not today anyway.

Shadow groaned again. He was aware that his apartment was a mess. He was aware that _he _was a mess. But no matter how many times he cleaned himself up, he would only return to the state he was in just now. The problem being that nothing could cover up the massive hole in his heart. Icy, cold venom stabbing at his heart, taking away everything.

That was his excuse. His excuse for hating the humans. They took everything away from him. His creator, his home...his best friend who was basically his first love. And only love. Urgh, humans. They made Shadow so damn mad! So damn frustrated and angry! So sad.

_They _were the venom. _They _were the things stabbing at his heart, tearing him apart. Why? Why?!

He had been happy, everything had gone perfectly. Then those humans came along and destroyed everything for him. Destroyed his life right in front of him, forcing him to watch with bright fear. At the time he couldn`t understand anger. The humans had brought that out in him, taught him what it meant with sore force. Brutal humans. That`s all they were to Shadow.

And somehow, he found himself sometimes working with them. G.U.N. They had been the people that had killed everyone on Space Colony Ark yet Shadow trusted them. Barely though. He still hated them for what they had done and would probably never forgive them.

As he had grown used to Central City`s buzz and habits, the black hedgehog had also grown used to seeing humans everywhere. He understood that this was the humans' residence and not his. He had grown to settle in, without resorting to too much violence. Though the urge to destroy the Earth still remained. Just because you try once, doesn`t mean you can`t try again.

Humans. Why? More importantly, why him? What had he ever done to them? This was all before. A creation. A sick little girl. An elderly scientist and creator. What harm was in that? None. So why?

That`s the question Shadow had been asking basically his whole life. He remembered his past; he had recovered it years ago. He still hadn`t been able to put it behind him. How could he? His past was the only company he had, even if it was rubbish.

The truth was, Shadow didn`t get along very well with others. G.U.N? He barely showed any respect. Omega? He saw him as a lackey, a helpless follower. Rouge? Rouge. Rouge was about the only one that understood Shadow even if she _was _very annoying and obsessive over jewels. The Sonic Crew? Shadow saw them all as pathetic do-gooders.

But what about their leader? Sonic. Sonic the Hedgehog. The hedgehog in blue, the leader in blue. You know the one? The blue hedgehog that wears white gloves and red sneakers and has shining emerald eyes. You`ve heard of him? Good.

Shadow wasn`t all too sure about his opinion on Sonic. The first time they met, they engaged in a rough battle. People called them twins. That`s how Shadow got away with everything. The blame was passed on to Sonic. And he always took it. What a weird gesture. But then again, Shadow thought of Sonic _as _weird. But even though it was weird, it was kind.

Kind. That word summed Sonic up in one. There were also plenty of other words Shadow could use to sum up Sonic. Some were good, some were bad. Faker was one. That was also the nickname that Shadow gave to the blue hedgehog. He never called Sonic by his name. Never.

He didn`t know why though. Just sudden action.

_"Why am I doing this?" _Shadow thought. _"Why do I do this to myself day after day, night after night." _

The black hedgehog looked around his trashed apartment. _"Why do I ask? That`s like asking the impossible, demanding the impossible." _There was no denying anything these days. _"Why do I think so much about them? Why him? I hate him...don`t I?" _

Shadow didn`t know what to think, what to say. He took Sonic on as a fun-loving, kind, childish, immature hedgehog that enjoyed taking IT a lot. Shadow was nothing like that. They may look alike, but if you looked closer, they were completely different. People`s illusions, human`s illusions. Urgh, again!

Shadow wasn`t exactly sure if he hated Sonic. He hadn`t taken it into consideration, thought. He had just simply decided that he hated the blue hedgehog. No thoughts nor feelings. Just action. A shame really.

The black hedgehog stood up...only to sit back down on the faded sofa. There was no point in getting up; there was nothing to do, nowhere to go to escape. He was a permanent captive of this world that was owned by humans and do-gooders. God he hated it. He just wanted to go home...

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"Shads?!"

A voice, from outside the apartment`s door. Shadow`s gaze lifted from the floor to stare at the black door that`s paint was peeling fast. He had a feeling HE would drop by. He always did, once a day. There was no point in hiding. So he called to him.

"It`s open!"

The door opened to reveal a blue hedgehog wearing white gloves and red sneakers with shining emerald eyes. Sonic. Sonic the Hedgehog.

He closed the door, then stepping forward cautiously. The emerald eyes took in the empty broken bottles, the pools of coloured liquid, the litter and the dust. His eyes met Shadow`s. They were both thinking the same thing. It reflected in both of their eyes.

Sonic quietly came over to the black hedgehog. He didn`t say anything, just sat on the edge of the sofa. Nothing needed to be said. Shadow`s gaze directed itself back to the floor. Sonic knew better than to stare. He looked around the once beautiful apartment, taking it all in. Nothing was said, just thought.

_"Oh Shadow." _Sonic thought. _"Why...? Why?! Why do you continue to do this to yourself?!" _

The blue hedgehog looked at Shadow. Shadow felt those emerald orbs rest on him. Sonic tried to figure him out. The black hedgehog was like a huge knot, one that took forever to untangle. So most people, basically everyone, got bored and abandoned him. Sonic understood that. He had been through somewhat the same.

Sonic smiled, though he hid it well. _"See Shads. We`re more alike than you think..." _

Shadow looked up. Sonic turned. Their eyes met again. Ruby and emerald. Shadow frowned. Sonic tried to avoid him.

"Why are you here?" Shadow asked. "I thought yesterday I told you to leave me alone."

Sonic nodded. "You did. I heard, but I don`t always take orders."

Shadow felt the urge to lash out, say something...end this gentle conversation. Sonic was trying to get to him, get under his skin.

"Well you should." Shadow said. Sonic said nothing. The black hedgehog stood up. He went over to the small kitchen and searched the fridge. One bottle left. Might as well. The last bottle was meant to be lucky.

He closed the fridge. He opened the bottle and took a large swig. He saw Sonic watching, a look of disgust crossing his face. So what? He wasn`t asking to be watched. He already had enough questions on his mind right now.

"Why?" Sonic`s voice tore apart the silence. Shadow took the bottle away from his lips and focused on the blue hedgehog sitting on his sofa. Why? Why another why?

"What do you mean why?" Shadow asked, putting the bottle down on the counter.

Sonic`s eyebrows narrowed. "You know what I mean! Why do you keep on doing this to yourself?! Bottles, bottles and more bottles! Why?! It won`t solve anything!"

"How do you know?!" Shadow shouted. "You don`t have anything to worry about! Your life`s pretty much planned already and simple! It isn`t as easy for me!" He picked up the bottle, admiring it carefully. "Not everything can be simple you know!"

Sonic listened. "But you have to understand! Bottles won`t help. You're wasting your money...your time! Why can`t you understand that?! It`s because you _choose _not to understand!" Shadow could only listen and watch. "There are more important things you could be doing but no! You choose to spend your time wrecking your apartment, drinking and wasting your life away! Why?!"

"Because I do! Why can`t _you _understand _that_?!"

Sonic was speechless to this question. Then came an answer.

"Because I wish not to answer it. Why should I? I have a life to live, do you? No. And why? Because your too busy wasting away!" Sonic stood up. Shadow watched. The blue hedgehog walked over to the door. Shadow stood out from the kitchen a bit, just to see him leave. Sonic`s eyes caught Shadow`s in a stare.

"You won`t find what you're looking for in the bottom of a bottle Shads. You never will. You need to understand that. Think, relax."

Sonic opened the door and left the apartment. He took a gulp of air. _"Poor Shadow..." _The blue hedgehog closed his eyes for a moment, then he proceeded to go home. But as he was going down the steps he heard a loud smash from inside the apartment.

Panic.

Sonic shot back up the steps. He rushed through the door, searching for the source of the smashing. He found it soon enough.

Shadow was kneeled down on the floor, bits of bottle everywhere. Liquor lay in small puddles on the kitchen floor. Drips of blood stirred those pools, freshly dripping off Shadow`s wrist.

Sonic shot over to the black hedgehog. He put his hands on the bleeding hedgehog`s shoulders. Shadow gasped at the sudden touch, looking up to see Sonic kneeling down beside him. "S-Sonic?"

"It`s ok Shads, I`m gonna fix everything. I promise."

Sonic led Shadow to the dirty sofa and lay him down on it. He looked around for a first aid kit. Nothing. Wads of toilet roll just had to do. As he wrapped the _bandages _around Shadow`s bleeding wrist, Sonic could feel Shadow`s ruby eyes on him. He looked up.

Now that he was even closer to the black hedgehog, Sonic could see clearly. There were dark purple circles under Shadow`s eyes, the ruby in the eye dull and lifeless. His black fur was ruffled, as was his quills, and his breathing was ragged.

_"Why didn`t I suspect something sooner?!" _Sonic thought, cursing silently. _"I knew he was bad, but I never imagined he was this bad!" _

It was true. A couple of days ago, Sonic had paid Shadow a visit and noticed that something was extremely off. He came by often. The blue hedgehog had taken in the appearance of the apartment and Shadow and they had talked some of it out. Shadow had been fine...now Sonic knew he wasn`t. He knew that he shouldn't have left him. It was too risky.

Sonic got up, moving towards the kitchen. He shuddered as he stepped over the spilled liquid and the smashed bottle on the kitchen floor. Terrible. "Better get to cleaning that..."

The blue hedgehog got a brush and pan from the cupboard. _"At least he`s still got these!" _Sonic thought, shaking his head as he cleaned up. The glass shards were everywhere, mostly in difficult places which were hard for him to reach. He swore a great deal as he searched.

"Naughty Sonic! Never thought I`d hear you swear!"

Shadow`s voice rang out from the living room. Sonic stood up, brush and pan still in his hands.

"Well excuse me! It`s alright for you!; you're not the one that`s to clean all this up!" Sonic replied. He looked around the apartment. "Looks like this`ll not be the only place I`m cleaning."

He exited the kitchen after disposing all of the glass in the bin, putting the brush and pan away and mopping up the blood and liquid. He sighed heavily. Shadow really was a murderous house holder.

"No it`s fine, really!" Shadow suddenly sat up. He winced as he struck the sore part on his wrist.

"Careful!" Sonic checked that the bandages were still secure. "Wouldn`t wanna get your bandages undone."

Shadow nodded slowly. He didn`t understand. Weren`t he and Sonic meant to be sworn enemies? Terrible rivals? That first fight had proven it. Or had it?

Sonic was a tricky person...Shadow knew that. Shadow was complicated...Sonic knew that. They both had different opinions on one another. They were identical, twins. They both had faced difficult pasts, basically still trying to cope. Did that make things better between the two? They weren`t so different...

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"You alright Shads?"

"Fine."

Small talk. Something Sonic cracked under. He knew it led to awkward silence. He had never fully gotten into a full conversation with Shadow, but he wished to. He wanted to _understand _Shadow, finally know what was going on in that head of his.

A mystery, that`s what Shadow was. A mystery that Sonic wanted to solve, once and for all.

He was tired of being patient, waiting for something to go off. Shadow wasn`t an easy speaker. He never got to the point quickly, always taking his time.

Sonic knew that Shadow was suffering, that was basically all he knew. Nobody could figure him out. The blue hedgehog had been there when Shadow had been on the brink of destroying Earth and had helped him. Not just because it was technically his job, but because he wanted to.

"I wanted to..."

"What?"

Sonic shook his head, looking at Shadow. "Sorry?"

Shadow looked at the blue hedgehog. Was Sonic deliberately making up an excuse or had he spaced out for a moment? Shadow didn`t know.

"You said "I wanted to" and I thought you were saying something to me and I wasn`t listening..."

Sonic scratched his head, confused. Had he said his thoughts out loud? Probably. Sonic had a habit for doing that, and everyone would look at him like he was crazy. Hey, maybe he was crazy.

"Sorry, got caught up in my own thoughts and said half of it out loud. Heh, typical me. Nothin to worry about Shads."

Shadow wasn`t too sure. What had Sonic been thinking about? I wanted to. What thought would trigger and require that? No idea. Those sorts of words could be related to anything. Anything!

The black hedgehog watched as the blue one continued cleaning the place up. Sonic hadn`t listened to Shadow telling him not to clean up and had started cleaning. If Shadow could smile, he would have. No-one had ever seen him smile. No-one. Mostly because he had no reason to. Why would he? There was nothing to be happy about.

"One day Shadow, you _just might _find something that _will _give you a reason to smile."

Rouge had said that years ago, possibly two. That was ages ago. And still nothing had made him smile. Would anything ever? No reason to, like he said.

"How many fortune cookies did you read to come out with that rubbish?" Shadow had asked sarcastically as he had crossed his arms sulkily.

Rouge had just grinned. She knew part of Shadow`s past as she was basically his best friend and worked with G.U.N. She knew something. She knew...

Sonic continued cleaning, stretching to get into corners he couldn`t reach. Shadow wanted to smile really badly as he watched Sonic go on tiptoes to reach. The blue hedgehog was nearly there when he fell backwards. Shadow gasped, shooting forward. He caught Sonic just in time.

Sonic exhaled deeply as he caught his breath. So close. Lucky one. He looked up to Shadow who was still holding him from behind. Shadow looked down, into the hedgehog`s emerald eyes. Sonic stared into Shadow`s rubies. Their eyes locked.

_"Wow, I never noticed how amazing his eyes are..." _Sonic thought.

_"Wow! His eyes are beautiful! I can`t believe I never noticed them before!" _Shadow thought.

They stayed stuck in that moment for ages before Sonic moved away. His legs were getting numb and he was pretty sure Shadow was getting tired holding him. They _had been there for a long time! _Shadow made room for the blue hedgehog to stand up, helping steady him. Sonic smiled gratefully at the black hedgehog before resuming cleaning. Shadow took that as his cue to head back to the sofa.

He sat down on it, not lying. He kept an eye on Sonic, just in case another accident occurred. Strange...

_"Why am I suddenly prepared to help him? I wasn`t like this before." _Shadow thought while he continued watching Sonic clean. _"I just got the sudden urge to catch him... Then I looked into his eyes. Something happened..." _

Shadow didn't know what it was but he felt as if something had happened, something had occurred. He felt as if he`d softened, become sweeter. Almost immediately. Weird. All because of Sonic.

Why Sonic? What was so special about that blue hedgehog? Shadow didn`t know. Nothing would have been a previous guess. But after looking in those eyes, Shadow had discovered something. Something true.

Sonic wasn`t as straightforward as he seemed. He had been down a rocky road, a bumpy path to get where he was today. And maybe, just maybe, the two had something in common? Maybe.

It was amazing what those eyes could tell, what was in them. Shadow felt as if he had just witnessed truth in a grand experience. First class.

Emerald. Shadow had thought they were just green. Simple, tell it like it is. He looked closer: Emerald. And a beautiful shade too. Shining brightly, ever so.

It made Shadow curious, made him want to know more about Sonic. As strange as it was to believe.

"Why are you helping me?"

Sonic turned round to face Shadow, duster in his hand. "What?"

Shadow stared at the blue hedgehog at the other end of the room. "Why are you helping me?" He asked again.

A small smile tugged at Sonic`s lips. "Because I help people. And you need help." The smile was gentle and kind. "I could never abandon anyone that needs help...so I`m not gonna abandon you."

Something dropped in Shadow`s stomach, softening his heart. Softening his heart for this hedgehog. For _this _hedgehog!

Sonic blinked slowly and carefully, emerald eyes flashing rays of green. Shadow blinked slowly and carefully, ruby eyes flashing rays of red.

Then they looked away. The moment was over.

Why were they doing that? Their eyes kept on meeting. They got lost in the moment and then separated. Why? Strange...

"Sonic?"

"Yeah Shads?"

"Thanks."

Sonic`s ears perked up as he heard Shadow`s words. Had the Ultimate Lifeform just thanked him? He turned round.

"You're welcome?"

Shadow chuckled quietly, picking up on Sonic`s tone that had a questioning point to it. The black hedgehog lay down on the sofa, staring up at the stained ceiling. Sonic had yet to clean it.

Sonic stared concerned at the hedgehog lying on the sofa. _"I need to think of something to get him out of this place. I have to go home...but I can`t just leave him!" _Sonic couldn`t shift his gaze. _"He needs my help! And I`m gonna give it to him. If I go, he`ll go back to the bottles." _

Sonic thought over the situation long and hard while he cleaned. Yes he was still at the cleaning. If it was a normal situation, a normal visit at Shadow`s, he would insist Shadow help. But he couldn`t do that now. Not when Shadow was basically at his weakest.

Suddenly, an idea popped into Sonic`s head. It was simple, easy and not much of a bother.

"Hey Shads!"

Shadow sat up, opening his eyes. He had just dozed off...only to be rudely awoken by Sonic. Great, just perfect. But he tried to hide his anger. Sonic was being truly kind to him and anger wouldn`t repay him very well.

"What?"

"I was just wondering..." Sonic started. He seemed nervous. "Do you wanna stay at my house a while? You know...get out of this place a while."

The black hedgehog was slightly shocked. Sonic was inviting him to his house! But why? Was the blue hedgehog really worried about him?

"Um..." Shadow paused, thinking it over.

"It`s alright with me!" Sonic suddenly said. "I don`t mind at all!"

Shadow hesitated before slowly nodding. "Ok then. Thank you."

Sonic threw him a smile and resumed cleaning. "We can go once I`m done cleaning."

Shadow nodded again before laying back on the sofa. He wanted to get some rest before setting off. Besides, Sonic would be a while taking care of the mess. The black hedgehog settled down to sleep.

_"Thank you Faker. I know now: I won`t find anything at the bottom of a bottle, and never will." _

Sonic watched him for a while, admiring how cute Shadow looked. _"He`s so cute! Wait, what?! Where the hell did that come from?" _Sonic felt a little tingle. _"Weird..." _

He continued to clean whilst Shadow slept peacefully for the first time in weeks. What was this tingling stuff about? This was the first time it had happened. And why was it happening when he was with _Shadow_?! So many whys! Why? Only time would tell.

**Hope you all enjoyed Chapter 1. I know in the blurb it said they started a relationship. Well that`s still to come. So now Shadow`s learned that he won`t find anything at the bottom of a bottle, Sonic`s experiencing weird ****_tingles, _****and the two are getting closer due to Sonic`s help. Wow. **

**Note: I probably won`t be able to update until January as I`m going to Florida for a holiday with my family. I leave on the 29****th****. If I get the chance to update, I will. In advance, have a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! **


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